Aaron Augustin found an opening in the Findlay Prep defense and drove the lane for the game winning shot with 10 seconds to play to give the No. 6 seeded (13th ranked) Miller Grove Wolverines a 67-65 victory over the No. 3 seeded (5th ranked) Pilots from Henderson, Nevada in the opening round of the Dick’s Sporting Goods Basketball Nationals in New York on Thursday.

The Wolverines move onto the semifinals where they take on No. 2 seed (#3 ranked) 43-1 Oak Hill Academy (VA), an 81-64 winner over No. 7 seed (15th ranked) Wasatch Academy (UT) at 5:00 pm on ESPN2 from Christ the King High School in New York City.

The other semifinal pits No. 1 seed (#2 ranked) 26-1 Montverde Academy (FL) against No. 5 seed (10th ranked) 26-3 La Lumiere (IN) at 3:00 pm. The winners move on to the championship game at Madison Square Garden on Saturday at 12:00 pm on ESPN.

The Pilots had knotted the game at 65-65 with 40 seconds to play on a pair of free throws by Skylar Mays.

The Wolverines moved down court after the free throws and called timeout with 29 seconds to play in the game. They came out of the timeout and spread the floor looking for an opening against the tall Pilots.

Augustin got the ball out front and recognized the open lane to the basket and drove into the lane. He lofted a soft shot that settled into the basket with 10 seconds to play for the 67-65 lead.

Findlay Prep (28-2) called timeout with seven seconds to play to set up a play to tie or win the game.

Out of the timeout the Wolverine’s defense which had already held the Pilots to 34 points below their season average pushed the Findlay offense out away from the basket. Mays tried to use a screen from deep on the right wing for a three-point attempt, but had to shoot over his player and the defender.

The shot hit the rim and bounced over and out of bounds as time ran out.

That tough Wolverine defense led to a 35-27 lead at the half for Miller Grove (31-2) as the Pilots who managed just 9 points in the second quarter after leading 18-16 at the end of the first quarter.

Findlay’s 6-8 junior power forward PJ Washington dunked with 2:11 to play in the first half to close the gap to 28-27. The Wolverines then finished the half behind good defense and rebounding on a 7-0 run.

McDonald’s All-American Alterique Gilbert fresh off his All-American game appearance in Chicago the night before converted a three-point play on a drive for a layup and foul to extend the lead to 31-27 with 1:14 remaining in the first half.

A miss by Findlay Prep and a quick rebound by Miller Grove’s Raylon Richardson and outlet pass to Gilbert led to a Gilbert fastbreak layup with 40 seconds to play and a 33-27 lead. Richardson made the big play again with a steal on the Pilots’ next possession and again got the ball down the court, this time to Colin Young for a jumper to send Miller Grove into the half with the 8-point lead.

Findlay ran out to a 40-37 lead in the third quarter and the teams traded the lead throughout the period.

Young tied the game at 47 with an offensive put back with 29 seconds left in the third quarter, but the Pilots took a 49-47 into the final quarter on a jumper by Markus Howard.

Miller Grove would lead by as much as five (59-54) with 4:00 minutes left on the game clock on a three-pointer by Gilbert.

Mays would hit a layup to give the Pilots their final lead of the game at 63-62 with 1:51 to play.

The Wolverines answered as Augustin found Aidan Saunders open in the left corner for a three-pointer to regain the lead at 65-63 with 58 seconds to play.

Gilbert led the Wolverines with 20 points followed by Raylon Richardson with 12 points and Colin Young 10.  Skylar Mays had a game-high 21 for Findlay Prep with 15 by PJ Washington and 13 from Markus Howard.